Truss



W. M'. DURHAM.

TRUSS.

APPLICATION man mus. 1920.

1,412,391 v Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

way/w. M 001mm! WILLIAM M. DURHAM,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF PORTLAND, OREGON.-

TRUSS.

Application filed May 5,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TILLIAM M. DURHAM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Portland, in the county of Multnomah, and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trusses, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to a truss device for caring for and treating abdominal ruptures. Trusses known to the medical profession and to the market prevent hernia at the expense of healing in that the close association with the inner wound devitalizes the tissues by cutting off blood sup ply to the injured containing wall and it is therefor a two fold object of the present invention to provide a truss which will not only prevent hernia but which will tend to efiect a cure. I The truss commonly used effects the former purpose but fails to provide means and results for the latter.

Broadly, the device consists of a truss adjustable about the body with a belt and provided with coiled springs with an adjusting bolt or screw between and within the coils.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention may be said generally to reside in the details of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully pointed out, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a plan view of the device.

Figure 2 is a vertical cross section taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view disclosing the spring coil and Figure 4 a detailed sectional view of the adjusting member.

The fault as found in the usual truss and which this device seeks to correct is that the commonly used truss, now in vogue, is convexed at the point of pressure. This proposed truss is concaved, and therefore reversed in application to the wound. The truss is supported about the body by means of a curved rod 1 which is bent to fit snugly about the hips, being provided with soft pads 2, each of which carry a belt section 3 by which the device may be adjusted about the body. Clamping the rod on one side of the bulge i are a pair of clamp plates 5 and 6 which are held together by long shank screws 7 so as to enable the plates to be adjusted along the rod to any esired location Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

1920. Serial No. 379,025.

whenever desired, by loosening the screws sufiicient to enable the plates'to be moved. Associated with the clamp plates is a stud 8 which passes transversely through a smooth bored opening formed centrally in each plate the stud being cylindrical so as to revolve easily within the opening and provided at its inner end with a threaded cavity or socket hole 9. At its outer end the stud is provided with a finger grip 10 to facilitate the turning of the stud, this finger grip consisting either of a wire inserted through an opening at the end of the stud and bent into the shape illustrated or it may be formed in any other manner convenient and suitable for the purpose in view. To the inner socket end of the stud is secured a pad member comprising an enlarged solid head 10 which is adapted to bear directly upon the hernia being provided with the usual convexed surface common to pads of this character. This pad is provided with threaded stem 11 which is adapted to be received in the socket 9 of the stud as shown to advantage in Figure 1 of the drawing. Arranged between the pad and the outermost clamp plate 5 is an elastic member formed of a single wire having one end embracing the stud 8 between the clamps and coiled upwardly in outwardly receding convolutions to provide a coil 13 connected to a similarly formed coil 14 at the other terminal of the wire by the linking convolution 15. The elastic member is thus seen to comprise two resiliently spaced coils one of which is anchored to the clamping plates 5 and 6 while the other bears outwardly against the head 10, its terminal end 17 being coiled about the stud 8 rearwardly of the pad as shown to advantage in Fig. 4. The head 10 and the shank 8 together form the adjusting bolt or screw of the device and as shown extend centrally between and within the convolutions of the two spring coils so that whenever the inner coil 15 which is adapted to exert pressure outwardly of the hernia or rupture is desired to be adjusted so that it will present a more or less convexed face, the stud 8 is merely rotated in its bearing causing the threaded stem 11 of the pad to move inwardly of the socket,'drawing the pad 10 inwardly and contracting the center coil 16 of the spring 15, thus fixing the extent of concavity of the truss at the point of application.

In operation, the truss is positioned upon the person in the usual manner so that the pad 10 bears directly upon the hernia While the outermost coil of the inner spring 15 presses against the abdomen at a distance outwardly of the edges of the rupture so as to allow the blood to circulate to the opening to feed and nurture the injured portion of the abdominal walls, thus facilitating its healing, while at the same time operating to prevent protrusion at the point of rupture. The elasticity of the wire coils enables the wearer freedom of movement anc tends by absorbing such pressure and distributing it uniformly around and about the rupture to prevent any such movement resulting in increased pressure at one part. Whereas trusses have formerly resulted in a prevention at the expense of healing it is thought that with the improvement embodied in the invention above described the wound can be treated in such a manner asto facilitate its healing, while at the same time rendering the truss more comfortable to the wearer.

Having thus described the invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1-- A hernia truss consisting of a curved rod, 21 pair ofplates clamped to said rod, screws to hold said plates in adjusted position on said rod, a cylindrical stud having a threaded bore at one end passing transversely through suitable openings in said plates, means for rotating said stud, a pad member comprising an enlarged head having a threaded stem held in said threaded bore, an elastic coil member formed of a single length of spring wire with, one end clamped between said pad plates, and said stud, the other end being clamped between said clamp plates, whereby said pad is arranged to be held in a central position with respect to said coil spring, as in the manner set forth.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM M. DURHAM. \Vitnesses WV. F. MAGILL, GEO. W. CALDWELL. 

